1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to means for connecting an electroconductive circuit mounted on a printed circuit board to an outside circuit in such a manner that an operator can test fully and align the electroconductive circuit mounted on the printed circuit board prior to the final assembly of the printed circuit board within a circuit box wherein the printed circuit board is installed for operation. Printed circuit boards are used to modulate or otherwise modify the output of an outside circuit, particularly those producing signals in the radio frequency range.
2. Technological Problems and Prior Art
An increasing number of electric and electronic devices, particularly those that operate at radio frequencies, incorporate a printed circuit board as a component thereof. Printed circuit boards are thin and have a card-like configuration. Consequently, they are delicate and should be tested prior to their final installation in an assembly. However, if the printed circuit board is not supported properly between its test and final installation, its fragility may render it inadequate for use even though it passes its tests. Furthermore, if a defective printed circuit board is installed in its final assembly structure before testing, the printed circuit board must be removed from the final assembly structure, thereby requiring expensive and time consuming operations involved in its disassembly, removal and replacement by another printed circuit board in the final assembly structure.
Some connector means available in the prior art are provided with one or more slotted portions adapted to receive a printed circuit board adapted to be attached thereto. The slotted portions are constructed and arranged to expose different circuit elements of a circuit printed on said printed circuit board to one or more electrodes of each of two opposite polarities simultaneously by constructing and arranging the positions of the various electrodes carried by the connector means to correlate with those of different circuit elements carried by the printed circuit board so that each said circuit element that is supposed to make electrical contact with a corresponding electrode makes its electrical contact simultaneously when electrical contact takes place between each other circuit element and its associated electrode when the printed circuit board is positioned properly relative to said slotted portions.
One configuration of electrodes in prior art connector means includes a pair of shoulder-type electrodes of one polarity flanking a central electrode of opposite polarity. A second configuration of electrodes in prior art connector means comprises a quartet of electrodes of one polarity arranged at the corners of a rectangular support member surrounding a central electrode of opposite polarity. Still another prior art connector means supports a plurality of circumferentially spaced, arcuately shaped electrodes of one polarity surrounding a central electrode of opposite polarity.
In each of the prior art connector means just described, it is necessary to solder all the electrodes to all of the corresponding circuit elements carried by the printed circuit board in order to insure that all the electrical connections are secure before the assembly combination of printed circuit board and connector means can be adequately tested. Prior to this invention, such solder connections were made after the printed circuit board and its associated connector means were installed as an assembly in a circuit box. In the event the test indicated a defective printed circuit board, the installed assembly had to be removed from the circuit box, all solder connections had to be broken, the defective printed circuit board had to be removed from the slotted portions and another printed circuit board had to be soldered to the connector means and the assembly inserted within the circuit box before another test could be conducted. Otherwise, it would be impossible to salvage the relatively expensive connector means for use in another assembly with an operable printed circuit board.
At the time of this invention, the printed circuit board art required an improvement enhancing the efficiency of fabricating and assembling radio frequency circuits that incorporate printed circuit boards to insure that a minimum of defective printed circuit boards are assembled in their final assembly with connector means. The needed improvement required that tests of the printed circuit board may be made before the assembly of printed circuit board, connector means and installation box is completed without invalidating the test results during handling that follows the test. The improvement was also needed to avoid postponing the test of the printed circuit board until after the final assembly step takes place.